1 Thessalonians 3:12-13 May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you. May he strengthen your hearts so that you will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all his holy ones.
Many
live with the misunderstanding the number of people showing up at worship
service is the gauge that measures the success of a church. The number of souls
sitting in the pews on Sunday morning is not the standard God gauges any
church. It matters not if there are 2 or 2000 in attendance; numbers are not
the way God looks at the success of a church. Instead, he looks at the hearts
of the ones in attendance.
From
our text today, the Apostle Paul, in writing to the church he had planted in
Thessalonica, gave us the standard God uses to determine the success of any
church. He points out two attributes that God requires for a church to be
triumphant, love for each other and everyone else and a heart that is holy and
just in the presence of God when the Savior comes. Nowhere in the scriptures
does it say numbers define the success of a church; this is something that
humanity uses to try to add to the Word of God. I believe that God has spoken
to that act in a crystal clear way (Revelation 22:18-19).
If
you are a member of a church that has only a few in attendance and you are
becoming discouraged, you can rest assured God is not saddened. God only
grieves because of a lack of love in a church and hearts that are not
surrendered and devoted to Him. No matter if we find ourselves in a
congregation of 6 or 6000, our focus should be on our love for others and
striving to live our lives so that we might be a good reflector for Christ
Jesus, the Light of the World, to shine before all of this earth.
The
world is trying to live its lives according to God's ten commandments and other
laws; however, we will never be able to live according to the law; there has
only been one that has done that, Christ. He said he did not come to destroy
the law but to fulfill it, knowing we could not live the law, so He lived it in
our place and shed His innocent blood to atone for our sins.
We
should keep in our minds what Jesus said to those who were testing Him and ask,
"what is the greatest commandment?" (Matthew 22:36-40). If we compare what Jesus said in this verse of
scripture and what Paul said in our text today, we will see both say the same
thing. Love and serve God with a blameless and holy heart and love others as
Christ did. We as Christians would live a more victorious life in Christ if all
of the empty alters in all the churches around the world would be filled at
every service.
Instead of counting people at the church service, count your blessings, then ask God to "strengthen your hearts so that you will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all his holy ones." Then if you harbor any bad feelings against anyone, go to that brother or sister and make amends and kneel to the altar at the next church service; praise God for becoming a lamp for our feet and a light for our paths (Psalm 119:105).
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